Steve Jobs Wanted Apple To Make A Car All The Way Back In 2008

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The iCar could have already been on roads if it all worked out.

Apple wants to start making cars by 2019, or at least that’s the target “ship date.” If that seems fast just know that the iCar could have been here even sooner. In an interview with Bloomberg Business, former Apple senior vice president of marketing Tony Fadell said that he and Steve Jobs talked about creating a car back in 2008. The talks weren’t very serious and occurred “over a couple of walks.” According to Fadell, the two batted around ideas about the design of the car. The talks weren't exactly steeped in automotive knowledge, though.

“If we were to build a car, what would we build? What would a dashboard be? And what would this be? What would seats be? How would you fuel it or power it?" The auto industry wasn't doing so hot around 2008 and electric cars weren't nearly as popular as they are today which are likely a few reasons why Job shelved the idea of a car. He passed away in 2011 and wasn’t able to see the Apple car become a reality. But according to Fadell the iPhone might as well already be a car. "A car has batteries; it has a computer; it has a motor; and it has mechanical structure. If you look at an iPhone, it has all the same things. It even has a motor in it. But the hard stuff is really on the connectivity and how cars could be self-driving."

He has a point of course, but to think you could use the iPhone as a model for a car and simply scale up is ridiculous. You can check out a clip of the interview here to hear more of Faddell’s thoughts on the auto industry. Let us know what you think in the comments.